As the old saying goes, "Everything is political" (and sadly so). I don't know all that much about Christine Quinn, but I do know that she's no idiot, and that her goal right now, first and foremost, is to become Mayor of NYC. Having said that, she senses that the popular sentiment (especially among Black & Hispanic voters) is in favor of establishing an oversight board/monitor for the police, and that's the only reason why she's in favor of it. However, in her heart of hearts, she knows all too well that establishing such a monitoring board would throw a monkey wrench into the machinery and make it even more difficult than it already is for the police to do their job effectively and fairly for the people of New York. In my honest and humble opinion, the whole "Stop & Frisk" procedure (although not perfect...what is?) is a very practical, pragmatic and realistic effort on the part of the Police Department to reduce the incidence of crime in the city. All politics aside, the methodology is based on statistical evidence, the rate of incidence and where the real victims & perpetrators of such crimes are most likely to be. The racial data of the subjects are simply the result of the information which points in a certain direction, which is what the police have to work with. In other words, the “Stop & Frisk” procedure is NOT, in and of itself, politically or racially motivated. And as far as "quotas" are concerned, the police have “quotas” for issuing parking tickets as well.

So in this regard, I believe that Ms. Quinn is much more of a political opportunist than a principled leader, and for that reason alone we should all think twice about having her as Mayor. I think we should look for a principled leader...not a political opportunist...to be the next Mayor of New York City.

I think that the former Mayor Rudy Giuliani is 100% right on this one, and so is Mayor Bloomberg, although I may disagree with him on other issues (e.g., his ongoing effort to regulate what we can buy and consume in with respect to sodas, etc.). But let's not mix apples and oranges. Just because Bloomberg may be right (or wrong) on one issue doesn't mean that he's right (or wrong) on every issue.

1:42 am March 29, 2013

LOU FROM QUEENS, NYC wrote:

It’s time that the public demand that journalists in main street media refer to FBI, and NYPD statistics when reporting, or more importantly editorializing about crime in our city and the rest of the country. Why are we allowing ourselves to be brain washed by liberal propagandists who are lying and distorting the truth when reporting about the race, ethnicity of both victims and their murderers in both New York City and the rest of our country? The practice of “stop and frisk” does not take place in my “middle class neighborhood” simply because we average about only two to three murders a year. We do not have to worry about what streets our children are walking to/from school, or worried about drinking a cup of coffee too near a window where a couple of bullets from a gang fight might fly through the window. Exactly what remedies and solutions have any of these white limo-liberals and their black radical allies actually proposed to help reduce crime in these almost ungovernable drug, gang, crime infested neighborhoods. Fact is that certain areas in Brooklyn and the Bronx account for the overwhelming amount of murder, rape, atrocious assault, and other violent crime in New York City.

The death of Hadiya Pendleton whose parents were at President Obama’s State of the Union Address was caused by two black men, 18-year-old Michael Ward and 20-year-old Kenneth Williams. Her death is one of hundreds of homicides in Chicago the only U.S. city to suffer more than 500 murders in 2012, the great majority of them drug and gang-related. In essence more Americans were killed in Chicago last year then in Afghanistan! Ward and Williams belonged to the SUWU gang and were trolling the streets about a mile from Obama's Chicago home on Jan. 29, looking for members of a rival 4-6 Terror gang. Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy said affirmative police work, not tips, resulted in the arrests. Chicago has some of the strictest gun-control mandates in the country. “Assault weapons” and high-capacity magazines are completely banned. At a news conference, McCarthy expressed frustration that Pendleton's death could have been prevented if the state had mandatory minimum sentencing for gun violations. Ward was arrested in 2011 and charged with unlawful use of a firearm. He was sentenced to two years probation which he was still serving at the time of this murder. How can we possibly address gun violence without dealing with the poverty and problems caused by single parenthood, substance abuse, mental illness, illegal immigration, shocking high school dropout rates and an overworked criminal justice system? And perhaps somewhere in this discussion liberal Democrats might finally question their own social policies that have attempted to replace traditional Judeo-Christian ethics and values, strong two parent families with an anonymous surrogate welfare system that seems to have created thousands of individuals without any sense of community, morality or responsibility for their own actions.

8:06 am March 29, 2013

Van Cliburn wrote:

TO: Lou from Queens

What you said is common sense only for those how have common sense to begin with! For everyone else who can't relate to what you said, it's just politics and business as usual. If you read what I wrote above about "Stop & Frisk" you'll understand what motivates some of our political leaders (e.g., Christine Quinn, Barrack Obama, et al). They're ultimate goal is not to solve any of our problems but to exploit and yes, to PERPETUATE, our problems for their own political gain. Just look at the whole gun and "assault weapon" issue that's been hot in the news lately since the Newtown, Conn. massacre. As you know, the problem exists not with the GUNS per se but with those individuals who commit the crimes. And good, law-abiding citizens should not be penalized for the behavior of those who don't abide by the law in the first place. From a political standpoint it's all about "doing something" even if what we're doing misses the point entirely, because then the politicians can look back and say, "See, I added a new gun law to the books which will make us all safer". Really? Go after the illegal drug dealers and gang members who manage to get guns no matter what laws are on the books. Focus your attention on those who are mentally unstable (and who would find a way to kill people no matter what gun laws are in place). Stop spinning wheels and solve the real underlying problem (certain individuals), and not just the superficial and politically expedient symptom (guns).

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